Stick dispenser

Abstract

A dispenser employs a container adapted for bottom-filling with a molten material which solidifies on an elevator cup to form a stick-type product. The elevator cup is moved up and down within the container by a lifting mechanism which extends through an opening in an otherwise closed end of the container. The elevator cup is provided with a sealing assembly designed to seal the opening in the closed end of the container when the elevator cup is in a retracted position, which it assumes during the filling operation and in which it preferably remains until the initial use of the dispenser.

We claim: 
     
       1. A dispenser for a product which is provided in the form of a stick, comprising a container having an interior chamber, an open end and a substantially closed end opposite said open end, said closed end including an opening extending therethrough and communicating with said interior chamber; supporting means for supporting a product stick within said interior chamber of said container, said supporting means being non-rotatably mounted within said interior chamber of said container but being movable within said interior chamber from a retracted position, in which said supporting means is proximate to said closed end of said container, to an extended position, in which said supporting means is proximate to said open end of said container, and said supporting means including an internally threaded bore and extending across said interior chamber of said container so as to divide said interior chamber into a first section located between said supporting means and said closed end of said container and a second section located between said supporting means and said open end of said container; moving means extending through said opening in said closed end of said container for moving said supporting means from its said retracted position to its said extended position, said moving means including a knob rotatably mounted externally of said container adjacent to said closed end thereof, said knob including a spindle extending into said interior chamber of said container through said opening in said closed end of said container, said spindle having a flange located within said interior chamber of said container in the vicinity of said closed end of said container and extending radially outwardly from said spindle and an externally threaded portion on a side of said flange opposite from said closed end of said container, said externally threaded portion being threadedly received in said internally threaded bore of said supporting means such that said supporting means moves from its said retracted position toward its said extended position in response to the rotation of said spindle; receiving means provided in said closed end of said container for receiving at least one discharge nozzle of a filling machine adapted to supply the product to said first section of said interior chamber in molten form, said receiving means including at least one fill hole extending through said closed end of said container; connecting means for connecting said first section of said interior chamber to said second section of said interior chamber, whereby the molten product can flow from said first section of said interior chamber to said second section of said interior chamber, said connecting means including at least one passageway extending through said supporting means; and sealing means attached to said supporting means for sealing said opening in said closed end of said container when said supporting means is in its said retracted position, said sealing means including an outer sleeve which extends from said supporting means and surrounds said spindle, said outer sleeve contacting said closed end of said container when said supporting means is in its said retracted position and encircling said opening in said closed end so as to form a first seal when said supporting means is in its said retracted position, and an inner sleeve which extends from said supporting means and surrounds said spindle, said inner sleeve contacting said flange of said spindle when said supporting means is its said retracted position so as to form a second seal when said supporting means is in its said retracted position. 
     
     
       2. A dispenser according to claim 1, wherein said first and second seals cooperate to prevent outside air from entering said interior chamber through said opening when said supporting means is in its said retracted position. 
     
     
       3. A dispenser according to claim 2, further comprising mounting means for mounting said spindle within said interior chamber of said housing, said mounting means including a plurality of resilient fingers extending into said interior chamber from said closed end of said container, said fingers being arranged in spaced-apart relationship around a peripheral edge of said opening, and each of said fingers extending toward said spindle at an inclined angle relative to said closed end of said container. 
     
     
       4. A dispenser according to claim 3, wherein said fingers are resilient enough to deflect a distance sufficient to permit the passage of said flange of said spindle as said spindle is inserted into said interior chamber of said container, said fingers having an elastic memory sufficient to cause them to automatically return to a substantially undeflected position after the passage of said flange of said spindle. 
     
     
       5. A dispenser according to claim 4, wherein said outer sleeve encircles said fingers when said supporting means is in its said retracted position.